But all-in-all, anyone with a shred of common-sense and some knowledge of the region, is aware that all this hype with Syria is due to the NATURAL GAS. Syria is one of the most strategically located natural gas port in the Mid-East. If Syria is 'lost' by the Russians and the Chinese, then the entire European region is basically held at gunpoint by the Middle Eastern energy interests. You see, due to Syria's location, you can basically avoid requiring to have pipelines over countries like Qatar and Saudi Arabia, and instead have those pipelines feed directly into the European market via Syria. It's been a huge source of contention.
There's more to it than that, but in a nutshell, we could potentially experience a World War 3 for absolutely no real reason other than one party wanting to have a pipeline running through a certain country...while ANOTHER country on the other side of the planet, who has their own mostly unexploited natural gas reserves and don't exactly stand to benefit either way from the gas-lines passing through Syria, is STILL meddling and playing de ass over there with irresponsible rhetoric about red-lines just because they want to 'stick-it' to Russia. STEUPPES!!!!!!!
This is shit talk. Natural gas IS indeed a factor, but for Russia... not for the US. You saying that a pipeline directly to Europe will put Europe at gunpoint from the Middle Eastern interests. How... by bringing competition to the European market? That alone reveals the paucity of your analysis. Currently Europe is being held at "gunpoint" by the Russians, who supply close to 40% of European energy. Putin doesn't want a competing source being made available to Europe by the Qataris, he wants to perpetuate the market advantage Russia has. I fully expect you to ignore this point, because it so effectively undermines your claims about the "Middle Eastern interests" holding Europe at gunpoint.
Not only that, but you also conveniently overlooking the fact that the Naval station at Tartus is Russia's sole remaining foreign military installation outside the old Soviet Union, and it gives Russia ready access to not only the Mediterranean but also the Atlantic by extension. NOT ONLY THAT... but it's a refueling and provisioning port, so any part of the naval fleet deployed west of the Mediteranean, could simply stop in Tartus rather than have to go all the way back to the Black Sea to refuel. It is a HUGE strategic base for the Russians. This isn't just about propping up the Russian economy with a natural gas monopoly back in Europe.
Which brings us to you laughable claim that the US' only involvement is so that they could "stick it to the Russians"... as though poison gas getting into the wrong hands (al Qaeda elements, Hezbolla or Hamas for example) isn't a concern of Israel, the Saudis and the US... just as Obama said. You trivialize the US interests in order to try and force the square peg of reality into the round hole of your conspiratorial narrative. And all this without even mentioning the moral imperative, with the full appreciation that that would be the rationale most vulnerable to criticism.
